Burn Before You Bury Me
by Fallen Angel Of The Forgotten
Summary: Spoilers for KHR manga chapter 388. It couldn't be true. Tsuna attempts to wake up from the nightmare, only to realize escape is impossible.


_**"Leave it to me, Reborn."**_

He had said those words in confidence. He had stood proud, been sure that he could overcome Jager and that he and Reborn could escape and warn the others, tell them of their impending demise, and figure out a way to stop it.

He had been so sure, and maybe that was half the problem. He was _so sure. _Reborn's teachings had made him that sure; had made him confident in his abilities. Some part of him - the part that had been arrogant with Iemitsu, but had been humbled by the black man's words - told him that he could do this. That taking down Jager was nothing, because really, he was already so powerful.

He had thought he could handle it. Then Jager's image had flickered, and he had shown up _behind Tsuna _and Tsuna had blinked _and suddenly Jager had him in the wall. _

The only blessing, Tsuna thought with his wide eyes and suddenly too-fast heartbeat, was that Bermuda was calling off his pet before the serious damage got started. Jager had moved back at Bermuda's word, obedient and true like a good guard dog was supposed to be.

_Like Tsuna should have been for Reborn._

Bermuda had spoke again, a lilt of arrogance and assurance in his words, as well as the underlying hint of _I'll get what I want; one way or another. _"Reborn-kun and the boy understand they have no chance now. Let's give them a bit of time to reflect. I'm sure after a while, Reborn-kun will stop saying stupid things like '_**I want to follow Tsunayoshi-kun's will'." **_

And beneath the bandages, Tsuna had detected, perhaps not with his Hyper Intuition, but with his paranoid senses, screaming that _they were bidding their time, playing with him like cats with a mouse_, Bermuda's smirk. His words held so much arrogance, so much self-assurance that Tsuna had almost felt sick, wondering _is that what I was like? Did I sound like that? _

"It's important to understand when to be bold, and when to be delicate. If you want to launch a proper effective attack, then a sneak attack is the only way to go."

Was it really? Reborn had never taught him that. Reborn had told him to face his fears head on, not sneak around them like a coward.

"In this case, I want to talk a bit more before anything else. Since I'm sure we'll meet again, Reborn-kun, I want you to think over the possibility of becoming my ally again. You can give me your answer when we meet next time."

And then Bermuda's voice had changed; there had been loathing in his voice, deep and unyielding, enough to make Tsuna's heart scream and his ears bleed. "Since you're intelligent, I'm sure you already know, but let me tell you anyway. It's already too late. Whether you accept my invitation or not-

**_"You're going to burn in hell."_**

Tsuna had felt fear before. He knew what it felt like. But this wasn't fear. This cold, clammy sensation skittering around the back of his neck and down his chest, knocking his legs out from underneath him and encasing his lungs and heart, that wasn't fear. There was no word to describe it. All Tsuna knew was that Reborn - the man who had trained him - looked _pale. _

More than that, he seemed uncertain.

Tsuna had gathered himself up off the floor at Reborn's command, trying his hardest not to let his anxiety of the situation show. He could do this, he told himself, Reborn and he would come up with a plan to free the Arcobaleno, and get them back to adult form. And they'd make it so that everything would be okay, because everything was _always _okay when Reborn was around, and-

"Don't overdo it, Tsuna."

"Eh?" Tsuna looked at his tutor, and for the first time, realized why Reborn seemed so pale, so... small. His shoulders were loose, and there was a look on his face, one that Tsuna recognized from all those times when he had come home after being bullied, and patched himself up. After he had realized his mother no longer believed in him. It was an expression that shocked Tsuna to his core, because it was on _Reborn's _face, and Reborn was the only person who had never given up, never stopped trying.

The look was resignation. Reborn, in short, was giving up.

This was only confirmed when seconds later, Reborn said, "You don't have to die for us Arcobaleno."

Tsuna wanted to pinch himself. He wanted to wake up from this nightmare - which this clearly was, because in the real world Reborn would have kicked him in the head, said what an idiotic student he was, and then said something along the lines of, "We'd better get back to the others, they need to hear this."

But he didn't. Instead he kept speaking, in the same firm yet quiet tone of voice, and Tsuna's throat tightened more and more with every word.

"This is our issue. Besides, it's pretty clear you can't win against Jager."

_That's not true._

"W-what are you saying, Reborn? You're the first one that jumps on me whenever I say that! So why-"

_It's a lie._

"Because all those times, you _could _win. You might not have known it, and your enemies might not have known it, but I knew it. But this time-"

_**It's not true!**_

"-there's no way you can win."

Something inside Tsuna broke. He wasn't sure what it was - if it was physical or mental. But he felt something deep inside him crack and shatter, and he was aware of the stinging of his eyes and the pain in his heart. He blinked the stinging away, although Reborn had already turned his back.

"I'll move alone from here on. You can take the boss watch, but you can give it back whenever you feel like it. I won't get mad."

_**"REBORN!" **_Tsuna heard the crack in his voice, heard the shrill fear behind it. He knew Reborn did too, and for a moment he was ashamed of showing this side of himself.

The Arcobaleno smiled, but it wasn't smug. It was sad... and understanding. "Today's representation battle... as the last battle I was able to see, I'd say you earn a passing mark. You did well."

And then he jumped through the portal, leaving Tsuna standing there, feeling numb and utterly useless.

They wanted to know.

The Arcobaleno had wanted to know everything - what Bermuda had wanted, what he had seen, what had been said. Reborn deflected all the questions with his usual poker face, but Tsuna knew the truth. Reborn was resigned to his fate; he wasn't expecting anyone to come save them at the last moment. He was ready to die, ready to tell everyone the truth and make them realize that they had all been living with a false hope since all those years ago.

Tsuna stumbled past them, listening to the reports from M.M. and Reborn. He heard himself say he would go home, since he and his father were no longer at war with one another. Reborn smiled at that, and for an instant they were back to their normal routine. Then M.M. asked about the Vindice.

_**"The Vindice are the final form of the Arcobaleno."**_

**_"To destroy Checker Face and the system of pacifiers means to destroy the Arcobaleno. You will die; we, naturally, will vanish from the world as well."_**

He stumbled away, hearing M.M.'s complaining voice, and suddenly, it was just too much. Everything hurt. He was torn between crying and screaming, because this was all too unfair. Reborn and the others didn't deserve this fate. They didn't deserve to be used like pawns and then thrown away with no regards to their sacrifices. What had been the point of letting them turn into their adults selves? To tease them? To show them how powerless they truly were? To give them one last hope to stretch for?

The truths piled on, one after the other, until Tsuna felt like his mind would explode. He wanted to fight, wanted to scream and say that there _was _another way, they just _hadn't found it yet. _But some part of his mind was coming to grips, telling him that he was trapped between a rock and a hard place with _no way out. _No matter what his decision, Reborn, and all the other Arcobaleno, would die. And there was nothing that he could do about it.

Beneath the quiet night sky and the light of a street lamp, Tsuna broke down and cried. He cried for Reborn and Checker Face's lies. He cried for Lal and Colonnello's lost chances, and Fon and Uni's stolen lives. He cried for Verde, and Mammon, and even Skull.

But most of all, he cried for himself, and the weakness held within him.


End file.
